Forty Kisses, Eternal Love
by EmeraldHeart1203
Summary: Katsuki and Izuku aren't quite sure how to react when they find their lips are attracted to each other like magnets. (Or, a series of oneshots of different kisses from a prompt list by Miraculous Hearts on Tumblr.) Rated T for Katsuki's potty mouth.
1. Kiss on a Dare

**As a new member of the BNHA fandom, here I am, writing mindless BKDK fluff as I prep myself for my newest angst fic! This miniseries of oneshots is actually based off of a prompt list on Tumblr by Miraculous Hearts. I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

***.*.***

* * *

Katsuki didn't know why he agreed to _any_ of this.

'This' referring to the party that was currently being held in Class 1-A's dormitory common area, hosted by none other than Ashido and Kirishima, which had been going on since Aizawa left at seven.

_I should've been asleep an hour and a half ago_, Katsuki growled internally, glaring at the clock, whose hour hand rested on ten. _Lucky bastard clock hand gets to rest more than I do._

That probably didn't make sense, but it didn't matter to Katsuki—he just wanted to go and _sleep_. He rubbed his eyes, allowing a little warmth into his hand to soothe his tired eyes.

Katsuki glanced around the room—no one else seemed to be bothered by the time. He knew he was one to sleep early, but for none of the others to even be slightly fazed by the time was fucking weird. How the hell did they ever expect to be heroes if they never maintained a proper sleeping schedule?

Katsuki tried to take his mind off his increasing tiredness by setting off a few small explosions in his palm, focusing on regulating the power through them.

"Hey, _Kacchan_! C'mere, time for the next game!" Kaminari called from the floor, patting the space next to him.

_Think of it as some sort of shitty endurance training_, Katsuki told himself, gritting his teeth to bear through it. _The longer I can last with these extras, the better I can claim to work with them. And if I can't stay up past fucking ten for missions, I'll be useless at night._ He managed to plop himself down in the seat next to Kaminari.

On his other side, though, was Deku.

Shit.

"Oh, K-Kacchan! Here, I'll move over—there isn't much space between Kaminari-kun and myself so, uh, I hope that's oka—wait, Yaoyorozu-san, thanks for moving—ah, sorry, Kacchan! I know you don't usually like staying up so late, so just a mo—"

"Shut up, nerd."

Deku's mouth clamped shut immediately as Katsuki sat down next to him, pointedly not looking at him, instead choosing to glare across the circle at Kirishima.

Kirishima grinned, so Katsuki flipped him off in turn.

"Ooookay, guys!" Ashido called from her end of the circle. "We're gonna be playing Spin the Bottle! Everyone knows how to play, right? Just raise your hand or something if you don't.

Five hands rose, Katsuki's included, but not without a "don't give a damn" thrown in there. The other four were Yaoyorozu, Iida, Todoroki, and Shouji.

"So, Yaomomo, Iida, Bakugo, Todoroki, and Shouji!" Ashido raised an eyebrow. "Well, who's gonna explain? Midori, how about you?"

Katsuki glanced over at Deku, who was flushed a pale shade of red. "I, uh . . . don't know how to explain it . . . ?" Deku tried.

_Fuckin' Deku can't even lie properly. His damn mouth always twitches when he's about to lie._

"Okay, then, I'll do it!" Kaminari grinned. "Whenever it's your turn, you spin a bottle, and you have to kiss whoever it points to!" Katsuki glanced at the grape pervert, who was, as expected, practically drooling.

Ashido seemed to notice the issue, and added, "It can't go further than a kiss, though, and anyone who tries to will no longer be allowed to participate. That means _you_, Mineta."

"So, let's begin!"

Katsuki was about to _get the hell outta there_, when Kaminari clapped a hand on his thigh. "You can't possibly want to _leave_, Kacchan! Surely you aren't too chicken for just a kiss. Or maybe you're not good at it?"

"Fuck you, I'm probably the best damn kisser in this room." Katsuki snapped, knowing full well he'd never kissed anyone before. And hopefully, Deku would have the sense not to say anything about it.

"Good, then you'll be staying!"

Things passed fairly quickly. Hagakure had apparently kissed Ojiro with a quick peck on the lips, the frog had kissed Uraraka on the cheek, Iida had (apologetically) given Yaoyorozu an awkward kiss on the forehead. Katsuki stopped paying attention after that, and slowly started drifting off.

Until Kaminari had awoken him unpleasantly with a poke to the shoulder. "Your turn, Kacchan," he grinned.

Katsuki just huffed, spinning the bottle without bothering to look where it landed.

The collective gasp from the class was what drew his attention to the direction the bottle had landed: towards Deku.

Who didn't even seem to notice, considering it was his turn next and he was too wrapped up in his own thoughts to even pay attention to what was actually going on. _Stupid nerd won't even pay attention to this even when he's about to be kissed?_

Katsuki wasn't quite sure whether it was this thought that spurred him on, or whether it was the sudden tightness in his chest, or whether it was his tiredness, or whether it was something else, but he'd figured he'd had enough of Deku ignoring him, so he grabbed Izuku's chin, turned his face to face Katsuki's, and pressed a firm kiss to Izuku's lips.

He felt Izuku stiffen beneath him momentarily, and was about to pull away, when—

Izuku put his hands in Katsuki's hair, keeping Katsuki's lips on his, and then _he deepened the kiss_. Katsuki could feel his face warm up, but quickly began kissing back, relishing in Izuku's eagerness to keep up with him—

Until Izuku let out a sweet little sound into Katsuki's mouth that sent all of Katsuki's blood rushing south.

The bottle then hit the back of Katsuki's head, forcing him to pull away. "Get a room if you guys aren't gonna stop anytime soon! Rules state no more than a kiss!" Ashido snickered.

Katsuki threw the bottle back at her in response as he pulled away from Izuku, snorting in light amusement when she shrieked, while Sero wolf-whistled in the background.

"K-Kacchan," Izuku whispered from next to Katsuki. And then what Katsuki had done sunk in.

He'd _kissed_ Izu—_Deku_. When had he started referring to him as Izuku again? Right, it was the moment he must've decided to _actually kiss the damn nerd_.

And it hadn't even been a simple peck; he'd practically gone and _eaten his goddamn face_, with Deku reciprocating at every moment.

Katsuki stood up abruptly. "I'm going to bed, and if any of you extras fucking disturb me I'll blow your face up."

"Like you did with Midoriya?" Kirishima chuckled. Katsuki just flipped him off, made his way up to his floor, locked his room door, and sat down on his bed, head in his hands.

"Fucking Deku," Katsuki growled, ignoring the very distinct tightness in his chest. "Making me feel . . . dammit."

Katsuki let a hand fall to his shirt, clutching it over where he felt that tightness, right over his heart. "Fuck, I like the stupid nerd."

Despite Katsuki's inner turmoil, he fell asleep instantly, the feeling of Izuku's lips on his drawing him into sleep the moment his head hit his pillow.

* * *

By the time Kacchan had left, Izuku had finally come to his senses, having been completely dazed by the kiss earlier. The _kiss_. Kacchan had _kissed him_. Sure, they were playing Spin the Bottle, but Kacchan didn't _have_ to kiss him on the lips, right? Or maybe he hadn't known that since he hadn't been paying attention earlier? This _was_ Kacchan, after all, so it wouldn't be too far-fetched to think.

But then _Izuku_ had pulled Kacchan closer. _Izuku_ _was_ the one who'd deepened the kiss, who'd whimpered when Kacchan pulled away.

How could he explain that, other than attributing it to _liking_ Kacchan _that_ way?

"Midoriya, you're mumbling again," Yaoyorozu whispered to him, making Izuku clap a hand over his mouth. Thankfully, no one else seemed to have noticed, having been too busy catcalling and whistling after Kacchan.

Hoping no one would notice, Izuku got up from his spot in the circle, and quietly left the common room, getting in the second elevator—the one Kacchan hadn't used. _There's no way I could feel tired after that_, Izuku mused, then pressed the button to get to the top floor, where he knew there was a small pathway to get to a secluded roof-like area, where he knew he wouldn't be bothered by anyone—All Might was the one who'd showed it to him, having wanted to be able to have private conversations about One For All with Izuku there, so no one else should have known about it, Kacchan being an exception.

Wasn't Kacchan always the exception, though? Every time something important happened, wasn't it always with Kacchan?

Even getting One For All from All Might was because he'd jumped in when Kacchan was attacked by the sludge monster. Everything he'd worked towards was because he wanted to surpass Kacchan.

But just _when_ did Izuku start having feelings for Kacchan that went beyond admiration?

Soon after that, Izuku fell asleep on the rooftop, still thinking about Kacchan and how he'd face him tomorrow.

* * *

Thankfully for both boys, no one in the classroom mentioned the previous night. According to Ochako, Iida had "politely requested" everyone to avoid talking about it until Kacchan and Izuku were ready to do so themselves and had sorted themselves out.

Izuku couldn't have asked for better friends.

The rest of the day passed fairly uneventfully, with normal classes proceeding as normal, and hero training only lacking Kacchan's typical shouts of "DIE".

Izuku was just about to get back to his room to do his homework when he felt a tap on his shoulder. "Midoriya," Todoroki said from behind him, "don't you think you should talk to Bakugo about what happened?"

Izuku shrugged, unsure. "I . . . yeah, but how do I even approach him after . . . _that_?"

Todoroki just blinked. "Can't you just ask him?"

"So I'm supposed to knock on his door, he'll let me in, and I'll say: 'Hey, Kacchan, remember how we ended up passionately kissing in front of everyone last night? I just want to bring that back up again without you blowing me up so I can tell you that I probably have a crush on you and have had one for a while now.'"

"Yes?" Todoroki agreed, not having sensed the sarcasm in the statement.

"I can't just _do that_!" Izuku protested, almost shaking Todoroki's shoulders.

"Why not? You were able to say it to me just now."

How clueless could one person be? "Todoroki-kun, that's because, one, _you're_ not_ Kacchan_, and two, he'll probably try to blow me up if I mention it!"

"He kissed you first, though."

"Probably as some sort of power play or something!" Izuku protested.

"So you're just going to ignore him for the rest of your life."

"Yes! Wait, no. Wait, _yes_." Izuku paused. "Can I do that, actually?"

"No, Midoriya. Just try talking to him. I'm in the room directly above his, so I can stand out in the balcony, and if I think he'll react violently, I'll just freeze him." Todoroki suggested, face still blank.

". . . I can't tell if you're joking or not, you know."

Todoroki's lips curled in a small smile. "Good."

Which was the reason Izuku found himself outside Kacchan's door ten minutes later, hand raised to knock on the door. He closed his eyes, took a second to brace himself, and knocked.

Only, it wasn't the door he knocked on.

"Oww! What the fuck, nerd?"

Izuku opened his eyes, startled . . . to see that he'd knocked on the centre of Kacchan's forehead. "OhmygodKacchanI'msosorry—"

Surprisingly, Kacchan just grumbled. "Whatever. Did you need something, or are you just here to waste my time?"

"Actually . . . I was hoping we could talk? About yesterday, uh, but only if you want to! Actually, I was really hoping you would, since I don't really want us to stop talking or anything even though I'm still really confused about what happened, and since you're the only one who I can talk to about One F—"

Kacchan cut Izuku off by pressing his hand against Izuku's mouth. "Shut _up_ before someone hears your fucking secret!" he hissed, dragging Izuku into his room.

. . . well, that left one problem sorted. Now to face the other one: Kacchan himself.

"You've got five seconds to talk, nerd, and if I don't care you'll be getting the fuck outta my room."

For the first time that day, Izuku didn't hesitate. "I think I may have a crush on you."

"Stupid goddamn nerd," Kacchan muttered under his breath, then moved forward and—

_Oh._ He was kissing Izuku now. Again. Izuku, of course, pulled himself into the kiss, not hesitating in the slightest to deepen it and pull Kacchan closer by his hair.

Kacchan let out a low growl, and Izuku automatically paced backwards as Kacchan pressed forward, until Izuku's back hit Kacchan's room door.

Izuku pulled away for a moment to catch his breath. "_Kacchan_," he gasped, "at least—_hah_—tell me what you're thinking," he breathed, forest-green eyes meeting blood-ruby ones.

"Stupid Deku," Kacchan just muttered under his breath. "Do I ever do anything I don't like?"

Izuku's mind, still addled from the kiss, was slow to piece things together. "So . . ."

Kacchan ran a hand through his hair, mussing it more than Izuku already had. "_So_ I'm saying that I like you too, you stupid nerd."

Izuku didn't have any words to respond with—he just pulled Kacchan closer for another kiss.

* * *

A week later, Katsuki supposed he had to thank Ashido and Kaminari for suggesting he come to that ridiculous class party—after all, he and Deku wouldn't have gotten together if not for it.

Katsuki glanced over at his boyfriend, who was fast asleep in his bed. "Kacchan," he mumbled in his sleep.

Katsuki couldn't have stopped the soft smile that took over his face even if he tried. Despite everything that had happened between them, he really loved that damn nerd.

Wait, _love_?

Did he _love_ Izuku? He certainly _liked_ him enough to want to kiss him into oblivion and back, but did he _love_ him?

Katsuki glanced at Deku, who was still sleeping, blissfully unaware of Katsuki's sudden revelation.

_I fucking love him_, something in the back of Katsuki's head whispered.

Well, that settled it. Looked like Katsuki would have an announcement to make that evening.

"Deku-kun, are you still asleep?" Uraraka called from outside the door.

_Screw it_, Katsuki thought, meeting eyes with one of Deku's All Might figurines. "It can fucking wait for us to stop making out, Round Face," Katsuki yelled back.

He was pretty sure he heard her squeak in embarrassment and run. Good. And Deku was still asleep, so he couldn't say anything about it, unless Uraraka actually mentioned something to him.

Then again, Katsuki wouldn't have put it past her. She and Deku talked about more or less every-fucking-thing.

And it was even worse with the icy-hot bastard. Todoroki was _always_ flocking to Deku whenever something happened, like some sort of clingy girlfriend.

_Too bad, bitch_, Katsuki thought, mentally flipping Todoroki off. _He's mine._

By the time dinner was over and all of 1-A was in the common room, Katsuki was standing on the coffee table, clapping loudly to get his class's attention. "LISTEN HERE, ALL YOU EXTRAS!"

That did it – everyone was staring at Katsuki now.

"Kacchan . . ." Deku sighed, lightly admonishing Katsuki.

Katsuki chose to ignore it, and instead pointed at Deku, still shouting, "You see that nerd over there? He's mine now. We're dating, so you keep your fuckin' paws off. Especially _you_, Round Face and Half'n'Half. He's _my_ nerd, and he's the best fucking thing that's ever happened to me, and all you extras better accept it."

Katsuki glanced at Deku, who was hunched over on the floor, face bright red as he mumbled something into his hands. _Cute_, Katsuki thought, amused. _When did his mumbling become cute instead of annoying?_

Then, the applause and wolf whistles began (started by Kirishima and Sero, respectively).

"Kiss!" Hagakure shouted from wherever the hell she was.

Katsuki didn't hesitate. He jumped off of the table, picked Deku up from his spot on the floor, and kissed him firmly on the lips, paying no heed to the cheers and claps from his classmates.

Well, maybe a little, but no one needed to know that.

* * *

***.*.***

* * *

**A/N: Ahh, every single character is an idiot, and I love each and every one of them. Except Mineta - he doesn't count until he can stop being a disgusting pervert. **

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed! **


	2. First Date Kiss

**...I tried. I really tried to not make it angsty, but here we are. In my defense, Katsuki and Izuku have a lot of issues to work out between each other, and Katsuki needs patching up, too. He's gone through a lot.**

**That aside, I cannot believe how much Katsuki curses. I've never cursed in my life before so this is kinda "lol wut" for me, ha ha.**

* * *

***.*.***

* * *

Izuku Midoriya was aware that he was of the emotional sort. He'd always been quick to process and show his emotions, which had, admittedly, made him infamous as a crybaby. But, thanks to that, he knew he was good at understanding what he felt and knew how to get it under control fairly quickly (even though that often involved bursting into tears).

Unlike a certain explosive blond he knew, Izuku noted, sparing a glance at said blond. Kacchan was aiming an explosion at Mineta, who'd just been trying to peek on Asui and Uraraka while they were changing.

As much as Izuku didn't condone violence as a punishment, he wasn't really too upset about Mineta being the one to be the target of Kacchan's wrath, considering his sheer lack of respect for the opposite sex.

Either way, Izuku knew that Kacchan, though still violent and impulsive, was at least trying to get a better hold on himself—and had been since his kidnapping by the League of Villains. And he knew he wasn't the only one to notice it—even the rest of 1-A had noted that Kacchan was slowly beginning to smoothen out his roughest edges.

It would be a lie for Izuku to say he wasn't proud of his childhood friend-slash-rival.

"Oi, Deku, the hell are you staring at with that fuckin' grin on your face for?" Kacchan snapped, pulling Izuku out of his thoughts. _At least I wasn't mumbling_, Izuku thought, relieved. God knew Kacchan would never let his pride accept Izuku being proud of him—heck, he'd think Izuku was looking down on him again.

But weren't they past that by now? Ever since their second Ground Beta fight and his reveal of One for All to Kacchan, hadn't they gotten better? Kacchan had understood that Izuku had never looked down on him (how he could have even _fathomed_ that was ridiculous; he'd been Izuku's _image of victory_ his whole life), and that all the anger he'd harboured towards Izuku had been unwarranted.

"Hey, answer me, you damn nerd!" A small explosion crackled in front of Izuku's face.

"K-K-K-K-Kacchan!" Izuku stuttered finally, internally scolding himself for spacing out right the second Kacchan had spoken to him. "S-sorry, I was just thinking—"

"Yeah? About what?" Kacchan hadn't asked sarcastically, if the tone of his voice was anything to go by, prompting Izuku to answer before he'd even thought about what he was going to say.

"You." It was out of his mouth before Izuku could stop it.

The sparks on Kacchan's hands fizzled out as his expression turned blank and his face reddened.

"Kacchan?"

Kacchan didn't respond, and instead looked away and sat down in his seat in front of Izuku.

Odd. _Not Kacchan-like at all_, Izuku thought, pulling out _Hero Analysis for the Future #2_ – the one he'd dedicated entirely to Kacchan (the first one having been about All Might) – and noted down Kacchan's strange change in behavior, wondering what could possibly have instigated this sudden . . . _docile_ attitude.

Docile, Izuku figured, probably seemed like the last word someone would use to describe Kacchan, right down there with _calm_ and _non-confrontational_, but when there wasn't anything bothering the blond, he was just that: docile.

_Interesting._

"Deku-kun. Deku-kun! _Deku-kun!_"

"Whaaa— _Uraraka-san_?"

"Deku-kun, class has been over for fifteen minutes—we thought you were taking notes for class, but—" Uraraka cut herself off. "Is that whole notebook about Bakugo-kun?"

"Yeah, I've been taking notes on Kacchan since he got his Quirk," Izuku admitted, scratching the back of his neck sheepishly.

"That's . . . that's pretty cool," Uraraka said, blinking in surprise.

Izuku could feel his face heat under the praise but tried his best to keep it under control. "Really? I just . . . I mean, _Kacchan's_ the cool one, if anything . . ."

Asui nudged Uraraka in the arm. "Speaking of Bakugo-chan, how did you get him to calm down earlier?"

"Huh? I didn't do anything, really, he's gotten calmer on his own," Izuku confessed, "but we settled a lot of . . . past misunderstandings recently, so Kacchan's had less troubling thoughts on his mind. He was the one who actually asked me what I was thinking about, so I told him that it was him, and he just kinda, well, _defused_."

Uraraka and Asui shared a look. "Oh, Deku-kun . . ."

Asui nodded in sympathy. "Midoriya-chan . . ."

"Huh? What is it? I don't get it!" Izuku protested, completely at a loss. What were the girls seeing that he _wasn't_?

"Deku, get your ass over here before I blow it to fucking smithereens!"

Still confused, Izuku apologetically left the two girls, running after Kacchan. "Kacchan, wait!"

For the first time, Kacchan did. "C'mon, nerd, we're gonna go to that soba place that opened up around the corner."

"E-eh? In our uniforms?"

"_No_, not in our uniforms, you damn idiot. We're going to the dorms to get changed, and _then_ we're gonna get the fucking soba."

Oh. That made more sense. Then again, most things Kacchan said (with, of course the exception of "DIE" and other choice threats) did.

It had taken more or less forever for Izuku to get changed, since Kacchan had rejected the comfy tee that Izuku had initially picked out which had the word _T-shirt_ on it in katakana, so now he was wearing a violet sweater over a shirt that Kacchan had lent him, since all Izuku's casual clothes were "fucking childish," as he'd so eloquently put it. Then again, Izuku knew that Kacchan's fashion sense was way better than his could ever be, so it hadn't taken much convincing.

While he was on the subject of Kacchan's fashion sense, Izuku glanced over at his childhood friend, who was dressed in a short-sleeved button up and tight jeans.

Hang on, since _when_ did _Kacchan_ of all people wear tight jeans and not loose, baggy ones? They _did_ look good on Kacchan, and Izuku wouldn't deny it. The jeans were firm around Kacchan's legs, accentuating the muscle there that still somehow remained lean on his legs. There was barely even a crease in them as he wore them—how on _Earth_ had Kacchan put those on in record time with how _tight_ they looked, especially around his—

"Having fun checking me out, nerd?"

"EHH? No, I wasn't – that wasn't what I—_Kacchan_!" Izuku buried his face in his hands – well, his arms – to try and cover up the blush that was undoubtedly taking over Izuku's face.

"Pfft—ha ha!" Was Kacchan . . . laughing?

Izuku lowered his arms to look at Kacchan, who was indeed laughing. It wasn't one of his angry _fight-me-you-bastard_ laughs—no, it was a genuinely happy laugh.

Izuku hadn't heard that laugh in years, and it tugged at his heartstrings. Izuku looked down at his feet. "Your happy laugh is nice, Kacchan."

A pause. Then, a word Izuku hadn't expected to hear out of Kacchan's mouth: ". . . Thanks."

A comforting silence fell upon the duo. Subconsciously, Izuku's hand reached out a little, pinky finger out. Kacchan's hand responded in kind, his little finger linking around Izuku's—as though to hold hands without actually needing to do so.

And for once, Izuku realized that he wasn't running after Kacchan or blindly following him anymore. No, they were walking together, as _equals_.

By the time the duo sat down at their table, Katsuki's hand was already missing Deku's warmth. It was embarrassing as all _fuck_ for him for him to have become so dependent on the stupid nerd, but as he'd been told time and time again by the counselor at UA—her name was Hatori or something—his feelings weren't meant to be shut down. He needed to learn to accept them; learning to depend on people was a part of the process.

He was secretly thankful to All Might and Aizawa for making him start those counselling sessions. Not that he'd ever admit it.

"So, Kacchan," Deku said, making direct eye contact with Katsuki, "since when did you like soba?"

Katsuki didn't quite know how to say that he'd found out about the new restaurant and wanted to take Deku there before that damn Half'n'Half bastard decided to. "I wanted to taste the shit here before Half'n'Half," Katsuki just said. It wasn't _entirely_ a lie. "And their spicy katsudon is supposed to be pretty good too."

Katsuki knew he had Deku's attention the moment he said "katsudon". Good to know that some things about Deku hadn't changed at all in the past ten years, despite everything that had happened to drive them apart—no. Despite everything _Katsuki_ had done to drive them apart.

_It was your fault, after all_, whispered the nagging voice that had been pestering him since All Might's fight with All For One. Maybe even since the incident with the sludge villain.

"Kacchan, are you alright?" Izuku asked from across the table.

"_Kacchan, are you alright?" Izuku reached a hand out to Katsuki, who'd only just stood up after falling off the log bridge, into the river. "Can you stand?"_

_No one had asked him if he was alright before. He didn't know how to answer. Instead, he just stared at Izuku's hand. _

"_It would've been bad if you hit your head."_

"_Kacchan's fine, he's strong!" the kids above just scoffed, jeering at Izuku. _

_Did Izuku think he wasn't strong? Was that why he asked? Of course Katsuki was fine! Like he couldn't handle a little water._

_Katsuki slapped Izuku's hand away. "Don't look down on me, Izuku."_

_The other kids laughed. _

_Izuku didn't. _

". . . an? Kacchan!"

Katsuki looked up at Deku, who was looking at him with the same concerned expression Katsuki had despised over the last few years.

_He isn't looking down on you_, Katsuki told himself, echoing Hatori's words. _You should talk to him, especially if you can talk to him easier than you can talk to me_, he remembered her saying.

". . . Thinkin' about the battle with All For One," Katsuki mumbled under his breath. "And all the shit I did before that. 'Specially to you."

Deku flinched slightly, but the expression was gone just as soon as it had come. "_Kacchan_," he says, looking Katsuki evenly in the eyes, "yeah, you've done and said some pretty terrible stuff in the past, but you're better than that now, and we all know it." Deku was completely confident in what he was saying. "I do more than anyone else. Think about how far you've come since the sludge villain!"

—_if you think you'll have a Quirk in your next life, go take a swan dive off the roof—_

"Why'd you save me?" Ordinarily, Katsuki would have hated to use the word 'save,' but it was the only way he could put it. The only way it could be put.

Deku's voice lowered. "I couldn't just let you die, Kacchan," he said softly, looking straight at Katsuki with those damn big eyes.

"Deku, I fucking told you to _kill yourself_ that day—"

"Would you say it now?"

Katsuki didn't hesitate for a second. "No."

"Then that just proves you're changing for the better, Kacchan. Yeah, you were a jerk back in middle school, but you've come a long way from that." Deku's voice was gentle – as it always was – as he said it, carefully laying a hand over Katsuki's.

For once, Katsuki didn't pull away from the contact. Normally, he hated all forms of physical contact and affection (something Shitty Hair and Racoon Eyes never seemed to understand), but now, with the gentleness Deku was using, it wasn't so loathsome.

Deku looked warily at Katsuki, as if to ask, _Is this okay for you?_

Katsuki just nodded, allowing his own hand to curl around Deku's.

"Kacchan," Deku's voice was almost a whisper as he slowly lifted Katsuki's hand closer to his face and pressed a soft, quick kiss to Katsuki's knuckle. His hand twitched in Deku's hold, but he didn't pull away.

"_Izuku_," Katsuki breathed, not quite sure where the air in his lungs went. Instead, he took their connected hands back towards him, slowly straightening Deku's fingers, removing them from his other hand. Deku let him, and continued to let him raise Deku's hand up to Katsuki's face so that it cupped his cheek.

Deku kept his hand on Katsuki's cheek, even as a single, silent tear escaped from Katsuki's eye.

Katsuki wasn't used to affection. He didn't like it; didn't like how suffocated he felt when people decided to touch him casually; how easy it was for them to think they could break him down physically when all he wanted was to be strong and always _win_; how—

_How it reminded him of the way he used to push Deku around in middle school._

This was wrong. He didn't deserve this.

Katsuki pulled Deku's hand off his cheek. Deku didn't protest. He never did. All he did was look at Katsuki with concern—that _same fucking face_ he made that day by the river; when the sludge monster was holding him captive; when he was being pulled backwards into the warp gate to the League of Villains by that scarred fucker.

The face that understood that Katsuki needed saving.

The only face who had ever understood.

It was too much.

Katsuki stood up abruptly, muttered something about needing to use the bathroom, and stiffly walked out, into the restaurant bathroom, locked himself in a stall, and felt himself collapse onto the (closed) toilet seat, gripping his head in his hands as he felt his body shaking.

It wasn't a panic attack; he hadn't had one of those in a while, but if he kept feeling this shitty, he wouldn't be far off from one.

"Kacchan!" Great, now fucking Deku would be here to see it. "Kacchan, open the door!" _Or what, Deku?_ "Or I'll get it open myself!" The telltale crackle of the electricity of One For All filled the air.

Kacchan threw the door open. "Were you seriously going to use your _fucking Quirk_ to destroy the damn lock?" Katsuki demanded.

"I was going to kick it open," Deku admitted.

"That's _worse_!"

"I was worried about you!"

"I _don't need your fucking wo—_" That was a lie. "Sorry," Katsuki grumbled. He wasn't just apologizing for this, and Katsuki knew Deku knew it too.

"It's okay," was all Deku said. "It's okay, Kacchan."

"It isn't."

"If I say it's okay now, it's okay."

"When did you start calling the shots, shitty nerd?"

Deku just laughed. "Come on, Kacchan, let's go eat before the soba goes cold – unless you like your soba cold?"

"Hell no, that's Half'n'Half's thing."

Deku hummed appraisingly. "I knew you paid attention to the others, even when you pretend you don't."

"Shut up."

"And I know you don't like soba, either."

"Shut up."

"So that means . . ."

"Shut _up_, Deku."

". . . that this is a date!"

Katsuki bluescreened. Then, "I SAID TO SHUT UP, SHITTY DEKU!"

"Sorry, sorry!" Deku laughed. "I couldn't help it!"

The mood lightened from there, and Kat

suki was glad for it. When they were about to leave, Deku's hand was once again on Katsuki's cheek, where he'd put it an hour earlier. Instinctively, Katsuki nudged _into_ the touch and not away from it, and his lips barely brushed Deku's palm in what could have been little less than a chaste kiss.

The smile on Deku's face was worth the embarrassing action. _Maybe someday_, Katsuki thought as he looked into those glowing viridian eyes, _maybe someday it can be a proper kiss. Maybe what we have could be more._

_Maybe someday, you can find it in yourself to love me._

* * *

***.*.***

* * *

**I CAN EXPLAIN ASDHAJFSDKV**

**Okay, no, I don't have an excuse for this. But in case you missed it, the kisses were present in this chapter (don't me): Izuku's kiss on Katsuki's knuckles and Katsuki's kiss on Izuku's palm.**


	3. Shy Kiss

"I can't believe I got assigned with damn _Deku_ of all people," Katsuki grumbled, attaching his gauntlets to his hero suit.

"It'll be fine, Bakugo, it's just patrol!" Kirishima just said, flashing Katsuki a sharp-toothed grin as he put on his ridiculous sleeves.

"You say that like Deku and I don't see each other _all the damn time_. It's like the universe puts him on a silver platter in front of me!"

"You say that like it's not exactly where you want him," Ashido snickered.

"Shut up, Raccoon Eyes, you don't know shit." Of course, Katsuki knew that was a lie – only Ashido knew that he actually _like_-liked Deku, and he had since the end of their first year. They were second years now, and his absurd _crush_ on the damn nerd only seemed to have gotten worse.

"Oh, Baku, I know more than _shit_, I'd say," Ashido giggled.

"Shut your mouth before I do it for you."

Ashido snickered, but she left him alone. Katsuki shook his head, and then headed to the grounds where the bus was waiting. _Of course barely anyone's here yet. Just Glasses, Ponytail, Half'n'Half, and Deku. Big whoop._

Katsuki let out an irritated grunt. "Can't those idiots make it somewhere on time?"

"Kacchan, don't call our classmates idiots."

"Exactly! Bakugo-kun, please show respect to your fellow peers!"

"They ain't _my fellow_ anything. Most of 'em are just a bunch of dumbasses," Katsuki retorted.

"Bakugo, as a hero, you should be watching your language better, considering you'll be exposed to the media frequently," Aizawa cut in, walking over with Eri in his arms. "Your flashy Quirk ensures that you'll be in the spotlight often, and your impression upon the public will depend on your attitude towards them."

Of course, now that Eri was here, Katsuki knew he had to switch to a G rating.

Which meant he couldn't flip off Half'n'Half for saying, "Of course, that's something I learned the hard way, Bakugo. You would do well to learn from my own errors rather than being as typical of an idi - "

Deku had covered Todoroki's mouth before he could say anything more. _Tch._

"You're not _jelly_, are you, Baku?" Ashido, who'd only just reached, elbowed Katsuki in the side.

"F – _Shove_ off," Katsuki growled, tearing his eyes away from Deku and Todoroki, who were _way_ too close for Katsuki's comfort. Hell, Deku was _whispering something in Todoroki's fucking ear_. "Where are the rest of the morons?"

Ashido just shrugged. _Real fuckin' helpful._

It took what felt like hours, but _finally_, everyone had reached the meeting grounds.

"Deku, let's go," Katsuki said, grabbing Deku's arm to drag him away the moment Aizawa had allowed them to disperse.

"Wh—Kacchan, wait a sec—" Deku had managed to say, before Katsuki realized Deku had tripped over his own shoelaces.

"Why the ever-loving _f_—why do you have _shoelaces_ on your hero costume, Deku?" What kind of idiot move was that? Shoelaces on a hero costume were impractical—they'd end up being a nuisance, getting tripped over or caught in something, maybe even set on fire, which would be an instant cause of danger to a hero and anyone he tried to save.

"Um," Deku said helpfully, "I don't know."

"Fu—_freaking_ superb, nerd. You should take it up with the support department before it screws you over."

"I should," Deku agreed.

Katsuki huffed, but let it drop. "We're gonna be patrolling the southernmost areas of Musutafu, close to Shizuoka."

"Alright," Deku nodded, activating One For All, then bounded across the buildings, even stopping to smile and wave ta civilians. _He'll make a damn good hero_, Katsuki thought absently, launching himself into the air with a few explosions.

Thankfully, the rest of the patrol was a fairly quiet affair. They managed to hold up a purse snatcher and turn them in, and they stopped a passerby from using her fire-based Quirk to burn up a newspaper, but other than that, the streets were calm.

The two of them were only a short way off from U.A. when Katsuki felt Deku grab his hand. "Whaddya want, nerd?"

Deku didn't meet his eyes. "Can we . . . deviate from the patrol path for a bit?"

Sensing that something was wrong—of course, for _Deku_ of all people to suggest that they directly disobey Aizawa's patrol order and miss a chance of anything less than an exemplary grade in heroics practices meant that something _was_ wrong—Katsuki complied.

Deku let go of Katsuki's hand and sprung away, leaping from building to building, and Katsuki couldn't help but marvel at how Deku looked almost ethereal in the moonlight, bathed in the soft green glow of One For All as he smiled at Katsuki and gestured for him to follow.

Almost like a mythical spirit leading Katsuki into what was definitely a trap. _Something important's gonna happen now, isn't it?_

Katsuki pushed down the thought, and let out several light explosions from his palms, propelling him after Deku until they reached the top of a bank building.

Deku kept One For All active, its now-familiar crackle comforting to Katsuki as well, prompting Katsuki to let his own palms crackle a little with a few explosive _pop_s.

"Kacchan," Deku said quietly, not looking at Katsuki, but at the city spread out before them, "I've been thinking . . ."

"Fuck, I better run, then," Katsuki grinned, casting a sidelong glance at Deku.

"Hmph." Deku nudged his shoulder against Katsuki's. "I've gotten better with safer plans, Kacchan. But anyway, I've been wondering . . . if something happens to me . . . can you take One For All from me?"

Katsuki instantly turned to glare at Deku, who interrupted him before he could say anything. "I'm not planning on getting myself hurt or anything, Kacchan. But . . . just as a safety precaution. There could always be more villains like All For One and Shigaraki out there, you know? I don't want One For All to die with me if I end up . . ."

"Shut up, shitty nerd." Katsuki looked Deku in the eye. "You're not gonna fuckin' kick the bucket before you pick a successor. All Might gave you that Quirk because he knew that you'd make it to be the best of the best. I ain't gonna let that shit pass. I won't take your fucking Quirk after you've made it your own, so eat shit."

Deku sighed, seeming a little more confident, but Katsuki could tell that Deku hadn't been satisfied with his answer. "Kacchan . . ."

"_Look_, Deku. You're sayin' you're scared that your Quirk's gonna die with you, but guess what? No one else knows you've got All Might's Quirk. You ain't hot shit, but you're strong. I've invested too much of my own goddamn time and effort to help you figure your shit out to let you and One For All die."

Deku smiled. "Thanks, Kaccha—"

"I wasn't fuckin' finished. You're gonna be the best hero ever, so get your ass on that and stop thinking about dying, 'cause that shit ain't happening until you're like, eighty and by _fuck_ I'll be there to make sure of it."

Katsuki couldn't quite interpret the look on Deku's face when he turned to face him.

But, slowly, shyly, even, Deku's gloved hands reached closer to Kacchan's face, and he removed the black mask from Katsuki's face, gently setting it down next to him.

"Deku . . . ?"

Deku made no movement to explain what he was doing. Instead, he just shuffled closer to Katsuki and gently held Katsuki's face in his hands. "Thank you, Kacchan," he breathed, his thumbs gently gliding over Katsuki's cheekbones.

Had it been anyone else, their hands would have been blown up by now. But no, this was Deku, the same Deku who'd always been _familiar_ to Katsuki, the same Deku who knew exactly what Katsuki was.

So Katsuki let him.

And Katsuki continued to let him, as Deku's face drew closer, even as he could feel Deku's breath on his face. "Kacchan . . . may I?"

Katsuki couldn't find the words to respond without snapping, so instead, he just closed his eyes and let Deku's lips meet his own.

The kiss was innocent, nothing further than a touch of Deku's lips on Katsuki's own, yet somehow . . .

Somehow, it was perfect.

He found himself not minding in the slightest when Deku pulled away, his face bright red with embarrassment—and Katsuki was sure his was the same.

"Heh, fuckin' nerd. You look like a tomato." _God, I love you_, Katsuki thought. Maybe things could go smoothly from now on.

* * *

That, of course, never happened—the next day's edition of Hero News Headlines had already capitalized on this little tidbit, and _Two of UA's Most Promising Future Heroes Found Locking Lips?!_ had made the front page.

Katsuki groaned as he tossed the newspaper aside. Normally, HNH had good shit to read about, but for whatever reason, the only thing headlining today was his fucking _kiss with Deku_.

Ashido was gonna lose her shit.

_Good thing I'm never gonna come out of this room, then_, Katsuki decided, knowing his face was blowing up in a fucking blush.


End file.
